The Friday Flush #17

The Friday Flush #17

   Oh, it's Friday, in the biggest way. With sick kids draining the last ounce of energy and patience from mom and dad, I peruse the internet for something cool. I know I've really only scratched the surface, and who knows, maybe in a few years I'll have amassed a nice collection of awesome links. For now, you end the week with Google Maps image stitching, someone taking over Google's old archive projects, and choosing your digital devices.

HyperLabs
   I remember the day when Google Earth debuted. I was blown away when I could see my truck parked in my mother's driveway, like I was a target in Will Smith's Enemy of the State. Things have taken another leap with Hyperlabs, that stitches the street view images from Google Maps into video. I took a peek at the example video and was immediately impressed. Of course, picking a great stretch of road and putting it to moving music takes a good eye, but the end result should be pleasing, no matter the skill level. At the least, it seems like a great way to capture some fun vacation memories of drives from the past.


The Internet Archive
   There was a time when we all heard that Google was going to basically digitize the world. Every book was going to be available digitally and they were going to be the ones to do it. A lofty goal, but it seemed like Google was the behemoth to do it. Alas, time and money, (and profit) all get in the way, and projects get abandoned. There is, however, a group that has vowed to take over the task. The Internet Archive is a group committed to taking over the task.  The original article on medium.com detailed the chain of events leading up to the "change of the guard". Some of the achievments: 6 million public domain books, 1.9 million videos, 6,000 ephemeral films, including vintage advertising, educational and industrial footage, 2.3 million audio recordings, 137,000 concert recordings,, 10,000 audiobooks from LibriVox and more, the largest collection of historical software in the world, and so on. It's worth checking out. 

Product Chart
   When it comes to our electronics, we Americans love choice. One of the biggest problems I have had over the years, is the issue of too many choices. I hit this wall of indecision when we looked for a new digital camera, laptop, tablet, and smartphone. The people at Product Chart have a beta version of a tool that can help with that. The comparison chart features an interactive way to search, compare, and choose a product covering smartphones, laptops, MP3 players, solid state drives, and flash drives. It's fun to play with and helps with that lingering problem of choice. 

    So happy Friday, and take it easy. We've looked at the world stitched together, the world digitized for consumption, and a way to choose a device to consume that world. Have fun!

J.